https://www.quora.com/What-is-harder-golf-or-baseball The games obviously have stark differences. A golf ball is sitting still and simply waiting to be struck. A baseball is thrown with the intention of avoiding being struck. Despite this one point, in the sense of striking the ball (without regard to the athleticism of playing great defense in baseball), it is easy to see the game of golf quickly becomes the more difficult game. A golf ball ultimately needs to be struck into a 4.25″ hole which is very precise. Mishits often in up in areas where penalties apply, unlike baseball, where foul balls can be hit indefinitely with no detrimental effect. In golf, the ball is much smaller, the hitting surface is much smaller, club is longer and the ball travels much farther. The golf swing is a much more complicated motion because of the size of the motion and the need to square the clubface. Mishits have a greater chance of ending up farther and farther offline. Some areas of the course are virtually unplayable. In baseball, a foul ball results in a new pitch. In golf, the player must go find the ball and hit it from the new location which is often more difficult than the original location. If he cannot hit it, he must incur a penalty to go back to the previous location. Ask any professional from one of the 4 major sports (who plays golf) which game is more difficult and I would bet 90+% would say golf. Besides the ball striking aspect previously mentioned, there are so many other aspects it is hard to know where to begin. In golf, strategy involves an overall plan to approach a specific course (all are different). It involves a more specific plan to approach each individual hole (all are different). It involves revising that plan after each successive shot is struck in order to make the most relevant decisions based on the most current situational information. The required precision causes the player to have to consider the lie of his ball, the placement of hazards, the distance required to his target, the landing area, the shots trajectory, the club selection, the wind, the contour of the landing area, any desired side spin to be put on the ball and multiple other factors on literally every shot. In golf, there are really 4 different parts to the game. Each player must be proficient at: Driving the ball off a tee. Hitting full swing shots off the turf. Hitting precise pitches and chips a partial distance of what the club would normally cause the ball to travel in order to approach the flag and get close to the hole. Putt the ball over contours and slopes while precisely judging the distance the ball will travel and the direction the slopes will cause it to roll. In baseball, a pitcher typically does not have to be a proficient hitter. A hitter does not have to pitch. The game is much more segmented. There are people to help runners to know when to run and when to stop, people who help pitchers to know what type of pitch to throw to what hitter and even people to let fielders know in what area to play in certain situations of a game. Managers can call time out and players can be substituted. In golf, the only advice a player can get is from his caddie. The player has to hit every shot and he has to play the whole round. There are no timeouts and no substitutions. It would be easy to write an entire book on the subject but people who have played both will almost unanimously agree golf is more difficult. Those who quickly say baseball is more difficult have probably played miniature golf but almost assuredly have never tried to hit a golf ball off the ground with a full swing. Take them to a driving range and 10 minutes later, you will have convinced them of the difference in difficulty….. and that’s just the difference in striking the ball. Which, is just scratching the surface.
I played racquetball while I was stationed at the Air Force Acadmy. Was pretty good at it. Gregg Popovich who was on the Academy basketball staff at the time talked me into playing squash. I wasn't nearly as good at squash. Pop showed no mercy and kicked my ass on a routine basis. Much like he does coaching the Spurs.
As Sam Snead once said, "the difference between golf and baseball is in golf you have to play your foul balls." Hockey is one sport who's expertise transfers well to golf. Hockey players generally make good golfers, they have to have good hand-eye coordination and the swing is similar and they know how to curve shots, et.al.
I can attest to that. Chuck Delich was probably the best hockey player to ever play at the Academy. He later went on to coach the Falcons. If you played golf with him, you better have your A game or you were going to get your ass kicked.
Damn. I just read that Brooks Koepka finished in the Top 5 in all 4 majors this year including a win at the PGA Championship.
